New Delhi/Mumbai, Dec 13
Telecommunications tower operator Bharti Infratel Ltd's initial public offering for up to $830 million (about Rs 4,500 crore), India's biggest IPO in two years, was fully covered on Thursday, boosting the outlook for new share sales.

The Bharti Infratel share sale adds to a busy week for equity offerings in Asia's third-largest economy, with more than $2 billion worth of share deals appearing likely to be closed by Friday after a lacklustre first half of the year.

That strong demand could encourage companies to come to the equity markets early next year with the government at the forefront selling down stakes in state companies.

By 3:20 p.m., demand for Bharti Infratel shares was 1.2 times the number on offer, exchange data showed. Institutional investors had bid for 2.8 times the number of shares reserved for them. The issue closes on Friday.

Bharti Infratel, a unit of top Indian mobile phone carrier Bharti Airtel Ltd, and four of its private equity investors are selling a total 188.9 million shares, or about 10 percent of the company's equity.

The company has set an indicative price band of between Rs 210 and Rs 240 a share for the offering.

Bharti Infratel would be valued at around a 35% discount to US and Indonesian peers based on the EV/EBITDA valuation method, Nomura analysts wrote in a note this week. — Reuters

New Delhi, December 13
Japanese multinational engineering and electronics conglomerate company Hitachi said Thursday it would invest US $862 million (about Rs 4,700 crore) in India for expansion here, including setting up of five new manufacturing plants, by March 2016.

The diversified company, one of the largest electronic manufactutrers in the world that has presence in a wide range of segments, including power and industrial systems, industrial components and equipment, airconditioning and television, had a turnover of 100 billion yen (about Rs 6,700 crore) in India in 2011-12.

Signifying the importance of the Indian market, the firm that is looking to nearly treble its revenues from the country to Rs 20,000 crore by 2015-16, held its board meeting here, the first outside Japan.

“Today Hitachi had its first board meeting outside Japan and we held it in India. We also fixed India strategy till 2015-16. We target to treble our revenue from here to 300 billion yen (about Rs 20,000 crore),” Hitachi president Hiroaki Nakanishi told reporters here.

Commenting on the investments for India, he said: “To meet our target, we will invest 70 billion yen (about Rs 4,700 crore) by 2015-16.”

When asked how many new plants will be set up, Hitachi India MD Ichiro Iino said: “Currently we have 12 plants in operation, including those of joint ventures in India. We will have five new facilities coming up by March 2016 across all our business verticals.”

The five new plants will include two for automobile components in Chennai and Neemrana in Rajasthan and also plants by joint venture, Iino said, without sharing further details. — PTI

Mumbai, December 13
Billionaire Anil Ambani's Reliance Group and China's Dalian Wanda Group on Thursday announced a tieup to develop real estate and movie theatre projects, the latest partnership between Ambani and China.

The groups, which did not give any financial details, said they will first look to build integrated township projects in India involving a combined area of about 20 million square feet across two projects.

Ambani's Reliance MediaWorks will also explore possible cooperation with Wanda Group in the multiplex business in India and the United States, the companies said in a statement.

The ambitious Wanda Group became the world's biggest movie theatre owner this year with the $2.6 billion acquisition of US multiplex operator AMC Entertainment, and plans to spend $10 billion in North America over a decade.

Earlier this year, Ambani's heavily-indebted Reliance Communications repaid holders of foreign bonds by raising a loan of $1.2 billion from a clutch of Chinese state banks. Also this year, his Reliance Power secured $1.1 billion in financing from Chinese banks for a power project in central India.

Ambani said in a statement that his group has become the "single largest trading partner between India and China." — Reuters

strategic deal Tieup to develop real estate, movie theatre, multiplex projects Latest partnership between billionaire Anil Ambani and China

New Delhi, December 13
The Cabinet today cleared the setting up of a Cabinet Committee on Investment (CCI) to fast track clearances for big-ticket projects of over Rs 1,000 crore investment.

The CCI to be headed by the PM will provide a single-window approval to mega projects which are often stuck due to a number of clearances. With an estimated Rs 1.8 lakh crore of projects stuck due to delays in clearance, the CCI has the potential to kick start the economy and will be a major investment reform to provide speedy clearances to big projects.

There are over 100 projects, each involving investment of Rs 1,000 crore or more, which are held up because of some reasons.

The high-powered panel for according speedy clearance to infrastructure projects was initially mooted by Finance Minister P Chidambaram in September at the meeting of the Planning Commission. He had suggested that the body be called National Investment Board (NIB).

The Cabinet, however, renamed the proposed body as the Cabinet Committee on Investment. The panel will have ministers in charge of infrastructure sectors as its members. Though the Environment Ministry had reservations about the creation of a NIB-type body, it is learnt that committee would fast track and coordinate mega projects and would not function as an appellate body.

Mumbai/Bangalore, December 13
The Reserve Bank of India is expected to keep interest rates unchanged on Tuesday, according to a new Reuters poll, with respondents split over whether it will cut the cash reserve ratio (CRR) for banks.

The RBI has left rates on hold since a 50 basis point cut in April, and expectations for a further cut have been pushed from December into Q1 of 2013 following guidance by the central bank in late October.

Of 41 analysts polled, 37 expect the RBI to keep the policy repo rate unchanged at 8 percent in December.

Respondents were almost evenly divided on expectations for a cut in CRR, a tool the RBI has been using to ease a cash crunch and prod banks to loosen lending rates. At 4.25%, CRR is at its lowest since 1976.

Of the 33 respondents, 16 expect a CRR cut on Tuesday of either 25 or 50 basis points, while most also expect a further CRR cut in the March quarter. While expectations are near-unanimous for an interest rate cut in the March quarter, 20 of 36 respondents expect 50 basis points of cuts, which is deeper than the 25 basis point expected in the October pre-policy poll. The RBI is expected to review monetary policy in January and again in March.

"Given the fact that growth is in shambles, and inflation is sort of coming under control, I think they will reiterate the guidance this time and say a rate cut is likely in January," said Abheek Barua, chief economist with HDFC Bank.

RBI governor D. Subbarao said in the October policy review there was a "reasonable likelihood" of further easing in the Jan-March quarter, when inflation is expected to trend down. — Reuters

New Delhi, December 13
Even as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said Thursday that steps had been taken ensure availability of spectrum and its allocation in a transparent manner, Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal announced that nationwide Mobile Number Portability (MNP) was expected to be rolled out by February 2013, allowing users to retain their numbers even if they move from one state to another.

Addressing the India Telecom 2012 conference here, Singh expressed confidence that the period of tough challenges faced by the sector was “coming to an end”.

"For timely implementation of the National Telecom Policy, 2012, DoT has finalized a broad agenda from Dec 2012 to Feb 201. Some of the key initiatives to be completed by Feb 2013 include approval of spectrum assignment and pricing, unified licences regime, M&A guidelines, finalization of norms on spectrum sharing, creation of a fund for R&D and manufacturing and, of course, pan-India MNP”, Sibal stated.

PTI adds: The government will auction the spectrum being held by incumbent GSM operators in the 900 MHz band whose licence are coming up for renewal in Nov 2014, telecom secretary R. Chandrashekhar said Thursday.

New Delhi, December 13
Based on feedback from major information technologycompanies, Bank of America Merrill Lynch is optimistic that 2013 could see a pick up in transformation related IT services spend. The sentiment on business outlook in 2013 for IT is better than last year, states the report.

Within the IT sector, BoA-ML feels that Infosys is likely to miss its guidance for the current financial year. The bank also sees a downside risk to its estimates for Infosys.

However, BofA-ML feels that the IT major's strategy to move up the value chain and to reengineer costs to improve competitiveness in the more commoditized outsourcing business is right. "There is also concerted effort on execution," the report says.

Tata Consultancy Services remains ahead of its peers on its investments in new markets and innovation, the report states. The bank also continues to view Cognizant as well positioned given its investment in client relationship management and new services in maturing IT services industry.

IT BUDGETS: Both TCS and Cognizant are cautiously optimistic about 2013 budgets. TCS's CFO TV Mahalingam is reasonably optimistic and has said that transformation is a key area of focus for CEOs. On the issue of manufacturing, TCS' CFO Mahalingam said the company's manufacturing vertical has a good pipeline of future projects. He also appeared optimistic on the financial services vertical.

While Mahalingam expects usual seasonal weakness in the December quarter due to the yearend shutdowns or furloughs, especially at manufacturing plants, he has not cited more than expected furloughs.

On the other hand, Cognizant's North America clients are forecasting flat IT budgets in 2013, similar with prior years, with offshore likely to gain. In BofA-ML's view, Cognizant was ahead of the curve in working to grow its consulting practice as others now seek to replicate it.

HIRING: Given lower attrition and uncertainty in the market environment, IT companies have become more cautious with on-campus hiring of fresh engineering graduates. While the campus placement process is still on, hiring is lower than last year. According to the report, companies are treading cautiously post last years' experience when the industry had over hired. — Agencies